Metro Adding Cars on Red, Green Lines

That's 20 more altogether. Starting Monday, about half the trains on the Green Line will be eight-cars long during peak periods. That should help during baseball season -- the Nats home opener is Monday -- when the line brings fans to Navy Yard Station.

The 20 cars are being used this way: Three trains each on the Red and Green lines become eight cars long. The rest of the new cars are held in reserve to form gap trains. They enter service when another train breaks down, or crowding requires an extra train on a line.

It's not just that Metro now has taken delivery of all 184 cars in the 6000 series, the newest style in the 850-car fleet. The transit authority also upgraded its power stations so it would have the juice to power them.

Where are the extra cars on the Orange Line? The line is still over capacity at many times but 8-car trains are not frequent enough. Several commenters on your chat have said that they rarely see 8-car trains anymore. Why just Red and Green Lines?

Why does the Metro pull all the way into the station and stop at the far end of the platform?

There becomes unncessary crowding at the back of the train because all of the people from the first entrance have to move all the way up from where the stairs or escalator are located, especially at the downtown stations like metro center, farragut, mcpherson.

The trains stop at the absolute end of the platforms so that Metro operators get used to 8-car trains that fill the entire station. Metro will be moving to all 8-car trains once the electrical system upgrades are complete and the new 7000 series trains are delivered.

nashpaul:

The electrical systems on the Orange/Blue Line are still being upgraded to handle additional 8-car trains. Currently, adding more 8-car trains to the Orange Line would mean reducing the number of 8-car trains on the Blue Line, something that our friends in Alexandria and P.G. County don't want either.